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D.C. Statehood Green Party
http://www.dcstatehoodgreen.org
Thursday, May 26, 2005
Contact: Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator,
202-518-5624, mclarty@greens.org
STATEHOOD GREENS INTRODUCE 2005 LEGISLATIVE AGENDA
Highlights include a legal holiday to promote D.C.
statehood (October 1); restoration of D.C. General Hospital; more
power for ANCs; and a plan for Greening the District
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The D.C. Statehood Green Party
has published its 2005 legislative agenda, with a wide-ranging program
to strengthen the social safety net and improve the quality of life for
all District residents.
"The legislative agenda will be useful as a
guide for Statehood Greens lobbying and testifying before City Council,
and also for Statehood Green candidates preparing to run in 2006,"
said T.E. Smith, Ward 8 representative on the Statehood Green Party's
Steering Committee.
The Legislative Agenda are posted online at
<http://www.dcstatehoodgreen.org//testimony/testimony.php?annc_id=6§ion_id=1>.
"We're especially grateful to Legislative
Agenda Committee co-chairs David Schwartzman and Michele
Tingling-Clemmons for their work in compiling the list," said
LaVerne Butler, Ward 5 representative on the party's Steering Committee.
"We consider the agenda a work in progress, and invite party
members and supporters to send their comments and suggestions."
Highlights of the Statehood Green Party's 2005
Legislative Agenda:
• A District legal holiday on October 1 each
year to rally for D.C. statehood
• Voting Rights for non-citizen D.C. residents:
encouraging 45,000 residents who are not U.S. citizens to become
active in local politics
• Increased power for Advisory Neighborhood
Commissions: allowing ANCs to introduce legislation before City
Council
• Renewal and strengthening of rent control and
tenant protections, reaffirming tenants' Rights of First Refusal;
creation of an Independent Tenant Advisory Commission; restoration of
the Tenants Assistance Program; full funding for the Housing
Production Trust Fund
• Immediate restoration of a full-service public
hospital on the site of D.C. General
• Full funding of HIV/AIDS prevention programs,
and a vigorous campaign to reverse the Congressional ban on
publicly-funded needle exchange
• Full funding for public schools; rehiring and
filling teacher, janitorial staff and positions cut in recent years;
acceleration of repairs; assurance that textbooks and supplies arrive
at schools before the beginning of each school year; restoration of
art, music, and physical education into the curricula; maximum class
size of 20 students for all grades
• Restoration of a fully elected School Board
• Enactment of recommendations of Lead Emergency
Action for the District (January 28, 2005), including independent
review of WASA's and Washington Aqueduct's management, infrastructure,
treatment practices, public outreach, and operation and maintenance
• A comprehensive plan for Greening the
District, by retrofitting photovoltaics, solar heating and cooling,
green roofs on existing infrastructure, water harvesting: thereby
generating 21st century employment for District residents while
reducing air and water pollution
• A progressive tax plan that requires D.C.'s
wealthiest to pay their fair share (i.e., a modest increase for the
top brackets); eliminates corporate welfare; and uses the city's
budget surplus to meet the essential needs of D.C. residents: such a
plan will ease the tax burden on middle- and lower-income residents,
strengthen the social safety net, and improve the quality of life for
everyone in D.C.
MORE INFORMATION
The D.C. Statehood Green Party http://www.dcstatehoodgreen.org
D.C. Statehood Green Party Legislative Agenda for 2005
http://www.dcstatehoodgreen.org//testimony/testimony.php?annc_id=6§ion_id=1
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